children

Childlessness was such a disaster that the Hebrews could regard it only as a punishment from God (Gen. 20:18); but children in abundance (Ps. 127:5) were a mark of divine blessing, and, in the case of sons, the means of perpetuating the family line and taking on the father's trade to ensure prosperity. Although mothers usually chose a child's name (1 Sam. 1:20) it was the father who gave religious and practical instruction (Exod. 10:2; Ecclus.=Sir. 30:1–13), and discipline was severe (Prov. 13:24). Christians are sometimes addressed as ‘children’ (Gal. 4:19; 1 John 2:1), a practice they perhaps connected with Jesus (John 21:5). And they referred to themselves as ‘children of God’ (Rom. 8:16) to denote the special relationship with God which they inherited as the people of the new covenant.